VR has manipulated sight, sound, smell, touch — and now taste?
Virtual reality is being used all over by trendsetting restaurants to offer unique dining experiences with the hopes of luring younger crowds.
By adding VR to the menu, these restaurants are able to charge incredibly high bills not only for the food but also the experience. Like Sublimotion, which opened its doors 2014 in Spain, and is considered one of the most expensive in the world at about $2,000 a plate.
At Sublimotion, VR is used to elevate the gastronomy and the performance element of the food and the dining experience. The experiences and menu change, but guests wear a headset to watch their food fly in and they can even see the nutritional information about their meal in real time.
At Mad Rex in Philadelphia, instead of VR helping to make the food fly, it helps to allow the visitors to fly — or to feel like they are flying.
The restaurant is themed to be post-apocalyptic like the movie and comic Mad Max. Guests can use VR to fly (and crash) a virtual airplane and “survive” the elements by drinking out of an IV bag and cooking their meat tableside on a hot black rock.
VR has the ability to transform not only the tasting experience but the overall space and environment. But other restaurants and cafes are also providing a space where people can come to use VR, especially considering the cost to own and maintain the tech.
VREI and other VR cafes are popping up all around as a space to meet friends for a coffee and play VR games. While the concept is not new, arcades and cyber cafes have been around for years offering a similar experience, the tech has now seen an update.
VR has the ability to transform everything about our lives, including the way we meet and eat. These are simply just a few of the examples of what is likely to come.
